Wish I Were Here
by Caserin
Summary: After her best friend falls into a nightmarish sleep and her boyfriend Riley exiles himself to Iron Island, novice trainer Natasha travels the Sinnoh region to find answers and a cure.
1. Chapter 1

I'm shaken from my dream as the lights of the Center flicker on. Squinting at the bunk above me, I press my hands to my face and can only think about how I want more sleep. I'd been having a dream about the simple comfort of holding hands with someone. I was walking on the shoreline of Sandgem with Riley. He was walking in front of me, not looking at me, but we were talking. And we were holding hands. I rolled my eyes at the bunk above me. I just needed to accept that things change and people change.

I hate change.

I turn to look at my Happiny. She's curled up in the bed next to me, hugging her little white rock. Although everyone hates me for it, I call her Baby. People don't seem to think that Baby is a legitimate name for a baby Pokemon. I just laugh when someone gives me a look for calling her that. I don't call her it because I'm too lazy to give her a real name. She's called Baby because Bryce really hated, hated this annoying song "Baby", but it would always be stuck in his head. He'd sing it all the time. Whenever we would hang out in the grass in front of town he would sing it to a passing Ditto.

As for Baby, we found her together. She was in the tall grass, and barely alive. She had obviously been attacked by some larger, stronger Pokemon. She was tiny, weak, and apparently newly hatched. It was likely that she had either been abandoned or had been separated from her mother somehow. As we went to the Pokemon Center back in Canalave, Bryce was humming "Baby", but slowly and with a bittersweet tone. And so she got her name. My Baby.

I miss Bryce. I miss him so much. Before my family moved to Twinleaf, we lived in Canalave. It was the most beautiful place I could imagine. It's where I grew up. I loved living with the ports, the boats, the salty air, and the library. Bryce and I would go read books about Pokemon in the morning, and in the afternoon we would play with Wingulls out by the boats. Sometimes we'd go fishing. Maybe his dad would take us out on his own ship for a few minutes, and we'd visit Iron Island. We had the best time together. It was like that for my entire life. Then we turned fifteen.

Bryce's family and my family were all really close. Bryce and I were going to start travelling together since we were now old enough for our parents to trust us to leave home. We were going to see all of Sinnoh. We found Baby, and then something started happening. There were strange occurrences around town. The old Harbor Inn, abandoned for years, was lighting up at night. And not like electric lighting. It was eerily glowing. No one wanted to investigate because everyone figured it was haunted somehow. A curfew got set up. We all had to be in our houses by seven at night.

Bryce went to sleep one night and the next morning he wouldn't wake up. He wasn't dead; he was in a coma-like state. And he was apparently having nightmare, after nightmare, after nightmare. Endless. Shouting for help, but he was asleep, and couldn't wake up. His mom tried to wake him countless times. The screams were haunting her. She stayed inside all day, tending to Bryce and fearing for him.

The last time I saw Bryce's dad, he took me and Baby out to Iron Island with one of the other guys from town, Riley. Baby was still sickly, and I wouldn't let her leave my side, especially with what was happening. I'd never really talked to Riley before. At eighteen, Riley was almost three years older than Bryce and I. He was tall with black hair, and he always wore a blazer with a hat. Riley's younger brother had also had the nightmares. His brother, by some miracle, had woken up. I was ridden with guilt over what was happening to Bryce, and no matter how much mine or Bryce's parents would try to comfort me, I'd never be able to forget visiting Bryce and witnessing a screaming episode. Or his mother breaking down in tears as she patted his forehead with a cool cloth. Riley tried to comfort me about Bryce. Riley told us that in time, Bryce would wake up, too. How could he know if that was true? But that's what he told me and Mr. Hunter. And we chose to believe him.

Riley spent more and more time with me. Riley helped me heal Baby. He helped me heal myself, though even feeling better about life I couldn't forget about Bryce. Riley helped my family when we moved to Twinleaf. Riley and I went to Sandgem one night and we were together until the sun came up.

And Riley went back to Iron Island, and he didn't return. I knew I couldn't stay with my family anymore. I needed to get out.

So here I am, in the Pokemon Center in Sandgem Town, squinting at the bright lights and hoping that everything will turn out how it's supposed to be. How I want it to be. I decide to stay in bed for five more minutes.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Notes: I'm frantically searching for my brother's copy of Diamond so I can play along and get all of the places Natasha visits correct, and in the right order (it's been about 4 years since I played through).**

**I can't wait to write the next chapter where something (hopefully) will actually happen.**

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><p>Last night marked the two month anniversary of my family's move to Twinleaf Town. I hadn't wanted to leave Canalave, it was all my parents. And in the end the decision was theirs. I knew they thought that it would help me get over what I was feeling for Bryce. Since it had happened I'd been having a lot of trouble sleeping, just the opposite of Bryce. It was hard for me to believe that they would move away from Bryce's family when they needed us most, even if they were doing it for me. They were way off in thinking it would make me feel better. It made me feel infinitely worse.<p>

Riley left three weeks ago. I'd been planning on leaving home when I turned sixteen, but since Bryce's nightmares started a few weeks before my birthday, I couldn't. I wouldn't. Riley had left home when he was ten. I can't help but wonder if Bryce would have been okay if we'd left that young, too.

I'm awake now. I've already taken a shower, and as I'm waiting for my hair to dry I give Baby a quick bath in one of the sinks. I pour a cup of warm water over her head and think through all of the items I packed again. If I'd forgotten anything, now would be the best time to turn back.

Not including what I'm wearing, I have five changes of underwear (hidden in the inner pocket of my bag-no one needs to see that), two shirts, a pair of pants (windy days are no good for skirts), flip flops (if my boots get too hot), a sweater (for chilly evenings), a water bottle, and Pokeballs. I wanted to bring more but only so much can fit into a backpack before it gets obnoxiously huge. I'm really hoping that all of the other Centers have washing machines, like this one does, or I'll be in trouble.

I didn't pack a blanket or sleeping bag of any kind. I decided before I left home that I wouldn't sleep in the wild overnight. I would just keep walking until I got to the next Center or safe house, no matter how late that required me to stay up and walk. I can't imagine how annoying it must be to carry around a sleeping bag in addition to a backpack.

As I pull Baby out of the warm sink water and begin to pat her dry with a towel, a Psyduck scuttles by my feet, clutching its head and moaning, "Psyyyy!" I glance over to its trainer- her head is in the sink, and her fist clenched on the counter. I attempt to hide my smile as I give Baby her smooth white stone, and she quickly places it into her pouch. She squeals at me, and I can't help but to grin back. I comb through my hair, then scoop up Baby and make for the door.

After signing out of the Pokemon Center, of course the first thing I notice upon departure is the sound of crashing waves. The Sandgem shore is straight ahead. I try to convince myself against it but I know I won't be able to leave without visiting one last time with it right outside the door. With a deep breath, I walk up to the rocks on the edge of the water. I sit Baby on the sand and lean on one of the boulders before sliding to the ground next to her. I dip my hand in the sand and let the grains sift through my fingers.

I miss Riley, but I feel like I wouldn't be as upset about the whole thing if he'd at least told me why he left. Or had, you know, said goodbye.

I squint into the still-rising sun and think of Bryce. Every second I waste sitting here is a second he still suffers. And until I have some answers, Riley is nowhere near worthy of my thoughts.

With that notion, I scoop Baby up from splashing in the tide pools and walk towards Route 202.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's notes: So, I found my copy of Diamond. At least, I think I did. If it is Diamond, it was ripped out of the cartridge and I now have the chip from inside. Salt. If I find a way to find out if it really is Diamond, my brother will buy a new one. I'm hoping that it's not, though. Between me and my brothers, we logged over 800 hours. I mean, I really loved that game. Bulbapedia to the rescue though: they have maps of all of the routes and stuff, so I can continue the story!**

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><p>I've walked through the second patch of tall grass in Route 202 and someone is already calling after me.<p>

"Hey, you! Girl with the Happiny!" This has to be a joke. I'd heard that when you're travelling with Pokemon people got relentless trying to battle you on the routes. But really, there was no way that there was already someone. In all my years I'd witnessed maybe six battles on routes, tops. It was probably some creep trying to hit on me.

Not amused, I turn to see who's shouting. It's no one I know. He's wearing a backwards blue baseball cap, and he's very young. Probably ten, he likely just began his Pokemon journey. I can already see now that he's expecting a battle.

"Hey. Uh, now's not a good time. She just woke up and-"

"Go, Starly!" He threw his Pokeball to the ground. A beam of light materialized to reveal a small bird. A look of soft horror flickered across my face. This kid expected me to battle without consent.

I turned and bolted up the path.

"Hey, you can't run from a trainer battle!" shouted the youngster. I didn't reply and instead ran wildly up the dirt road. I'm not trying to battle just to pass time right now. I need to get to Iron Island. I walk up the trail, and I could swear I felt the youngster's Starly flying after me. But when I turned around I could see that he had recalled his Pokemon.

"Hello, there," said another trainer. How far have I walked? Twenty feet? Is the entire journey going to be like this?

" I'm Natalie," she continued. Even though I was assuming this girl wanted to battle as well, I already liked her more than the other kid. At least she introduced herself and wasn't flinging balls at me.

"I'm Natasha." I say back, nearly frowning. I realize now how rude I'm actually being, and not just to Natalie. Basically everyone I've talked to in the past two months has gotten nothing but sass or annoyance from me. I glanced down at Baby, her eyes shining up at me. I'm just not the same person I used to be. In that moment I was disgusted with myself.

"Cute Happiny," said Natalie with a smile. I tried to smile back, but I have a feeling it came off as more of a grimace. "I was just wondering if you'd like to battle?" I glance back down at Baby. I guess I need to start training her somewhere. Baby's only ever battled with Riley's Lucario before, and both Riley and Lucario loved Baby. So I have a _small_ hunch they may have gone easy on her.

"Sure," I say. I place Baby on the ground. She clenches her little hands into fists, and a big and genuine smile manages its way across my face. The smile manages its way right off of my face when Natalie sends out her first Pokemon. A Bidoof. I can't really say why, but I despise the buck-toothed woodland creatures. Natalie hadn't struck me as one to carry a Bidoof with her.

"Bidoof, Growl!" said Natalie. It growled at Baby… and was that it? It didn't look like it did anything to her.

"Baby, use Metronome!" I said. Her little clenched fists lit up, and flames flew from her hands to the Bidoof. A one-hit KO! She ran back to me, and I scooped her back into my arms. Natalie looked surprised.

"Looks can be deceiving, I guess…" she mumbled, and handed me money for winning. I grinned. Maybe Baby actually was a lot stronger than I'd given her credit for. At least now I knew she'd be able to protect herself if needed.

I continued walking up the path, through another patch of tall grass. A Bidoof started scratching at my foot, and I kicked it off. There was another trainer up ahead who looked suspiciously like the young boy I'd encountered before Natalie. I hid in the tall grass, and when he wasn't looking, I bolted past him.

I walked through another patch of tall grass and right in front of me was the entrance gate to Jubilife City. I looked up at the entrance with wide eyes and my mouth opened slightly as I took it all in. I always loved visiting Jubilife, but my parents didn't like how a lot of the people there presented themselves. We lived in Canalave because it was so laid-back, they said. Jubilife was fast-paced and while my parents hated it, I loved it for that. There was always something going on, never a dull moment. I took a step into the city and wondered if I could just stay here for a while. I know that Baby can feel my excitement, and she starts babbling happily. It's definitely too early to set up camp- I'd actually made it very quickly up Route 202 to here. If I'd known that Jubilife was so close to Twinleaf I probably would have come to visit with Riley.

I pursed my lips as my thoughts returned to Riley. My feelings are really conflicted. It's possible that I could just find out how to heal Bryce on my own. I should really try. But Riley is older, and wiser, and has stronger Pokemon. And the same thing happened to his own brother. He must know _something_. As long as I can manage not to punch Riley when I see him again, it should all be okay. I hope. I walk into the city and try to decide what to do. I walk as far north as I can until some dumbass with blue hair and a weird space outfit stops me.

"Nope, can't pass here. Sorry," he said with a face that told me he was totally not sorry.

I sneer and don't move. After a moment of standoff, I try to pass again. The dude threatens to send out his Golbats on me.

"Oh, wow, I'm so scared," I say with just as much sneer as the one on my face.

"You should be. It doesn't look like your little pink friend is going to be able to do much battling," one of them said, looking at Baby with a menacing smile.

I cock my head to the side. "You have a bowl cut," I say simply, turn and start to walk away. I look down and notice Baby is sticking her tongue out. A small smile makes its way onto my face. I decide that it would be a good time for us to get lunch, so I walk to the Poke Mart and buy us some food. We sit out by the fountain across the street and share a bag of chips. It's looking to be a beautiful day.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's notes: I'm trying to make the story as true to the game as possible, especially since Natasha isn't going to fight any gym leaders (at this point), since she's not going for the Pokemon League. I just don't know if I should stop with the random trainer encounters on trails or not. I feel like they might possibly get very repetitive (you know, if they aren't already). So, after this chapter, don't be surprised if there aren't many trainers on routes asking to battle, we can just imagine they are happening unnoted.**

**And thanks for reviewing, guys. It seriously makes my day when I go to my email and I see I have a review. :]**

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><p>In all honesty… I didn't actually know exactly how to get to Canalave from Jubilife. I was on an adventure, right? So I didn't ask for directions. I wanted to figure this out on my own. I knew it wasn't that far and that I could handle it. There was nothing of anxiety-inducing stature between here and Canalave. So later that afternoon, after some exploring the city, I noticed the blue-haired freaks were gone and I headed north.<p>

There were three trainers up the path and through the tall grass, all of whom I battled. Baby won all of the encounters, but she was moderately beat up afterwards. I couldn't fathom walking on with her actually in pain in my arms. I wouldn't make it to Canalave like that. I took her back into Jubilife to the Pokemon Center before going any further, and I did it for her so she'd stop hurting, but I also knew I was doing it for me. Guilt made me feel fuzzy in the head anytime I looked down at the little one and saw her looking upset because I had made her fight in battles. I also bought a few potions from the Department Store while I was back in Jubilife, just in case.

After walking up Route 204 again, I realized the only way to move forward was to trek through a cave, the Ravaged Path. I backed up and looked at the cavern to try to discern how big it was. You could actually see the exit above, so it was clear I wouldn't be stuck in there for too long. Then I turned around to look at the sun. It was about three o'clock in the afternoon. With that time, I could make it to Canalave before dark. I entered the cave and Baby squirmed uneasily in my arms.

"It's alright, sweetie," I whispered to her. I knew that we'd possibly be attacked by wild Pokemon. I just hoped they wouldn't be too much for her to take on.

I tiptoed my way up a steep ramp, and I could see that to my right was the exit. Unexpectedly (although I guess I should have been expecting it), a Zubat landed on my head and started screeching.

"SHIT!" I screamed. I didn't mean to, but I dropped Baby as I started reached to swat at the bat. Its feet were clawed into my hair. I fell to my knees as I grabbed at it and tried to extricate it. When it didn't free itself I dropped to the ground and started rolling around. All I can think about as this goes on is how happy I am that I'm not travelling with anyone yet, because this is more than a little embarrassing. I felt Baby use one of her attacks on the Zubat and it flew feebly out of my hair into the back part of the cave. It occurred to me that I could capture it, but it also occurred to me that I really didn't want a Zubat. So I fixed my ponytail and pulled Baby back into my arms, and then tried walking towards the exit. There were rocks, lined up, blocking the way out. I thought I remembered someone telling me what to do in a situation like this. I was supposed to have taught Baby to smash then? _Screw that…_ I placed Baby on top of the rock and struggled a bit to climb up with her. I needed to get my footing on one of the rocks and pull myself up on top of the biggest one with Baby. A little physical exertion was all it took. I slid down the side and just like that, we were out of the cave. As I walked up the path, there was a girl who wanted to battle. Of course. I fought her, and Baby won. The girl gave me money for winning. I don't know if Baby keeps winning because she's actually really good at fighting, or because everyone and everything else is really weak. I'm going to go with the latter. It's not that I don't trust in Baby's abilities, but I've never really trained her until this point, and considering I'd found her as a near-newborn there was no way that she could be all too strong.

Just above the exit of the Path, I noticed a Pokeball. I ran to pick it up, only to find that it was an Awakening, to wake up Pokemon who had been put to sleep in battle. I rummaged to put it in my bag and continued to follow the path. There was a pair of girls who looked identical, and I knew they were going to force me to battle, so I booked it up the path. Same with when I saw another kid in a baseball cap. And I looked up and realized that I was in another city. Or, rather, a town. This was definitely not a city. There were a few buildings scattered, and I noticed that there were flowers. Everywhere. Absolutely everywhere. It smelled amazing, and I felt weirdly at home. I walked into town and just kind of sat in a patch of flowers for no reason other than to take it all in and be present in the moment. Baby ran around in a circle being generally adorable. I sat there for awhile, enjoying the sweet smells, before realizing I should probably find out where I was, if this was Floaroma or not. I had my money on that being a definite yes, but I'd never been here before and wanted to make positive. I made Baby go back into her Pokeball so that I could take her to the Center and heal her. I hated putting Baby in her Pokeball. I felt so lonely without her. Not even just lonely, but horribly alone. Besides my parents, Baby was basically all I had left, what with Riley leaving me and Bryce being in a coma.

"Where am I, exactly?" I asked the Nurse Joy as she placed Baby's Pokeball on the healing machine./ppThe Nurse smiled. "You're in Floaroma Town! Are you a traveler?" I nodded, and smiled. At least the Nurses were nice.

"Yeah, I am. I'm actually headed to Canalave City."

The Nurse looked confused. "Oh, dear, you've actually passed Canalave. A while ago. You have to pass through Jubilife to get there. To the west." My face dropped a bit, not amused with myself.

"Wow, are you serious? Well… I guess that's what I get for not having a map or asking directions. Do you think I have time today to turn around and get there?"

The Nurse handed me Baby's now-healed Pokeball. "Probably not, I'm sorry to say. The sun is setting and travelling around here at night probably isn't the safest," she paused. "I'm assuming that you're a trainer, right?" I nodded. "You may be excited to hear that on Fridays there are always a group of Drifloon who gather directly East of here, at the Valley Windworks," the Nurse smiled. "So if you had wanted an addition like that to your team, I would go for it! But," she paused, her voice lowering and her face looking increasingly concerned, "if you were going to go, go now, before it gets too dark. I wouldn't recommend being near Drifloon at night. They're a creature which…" and just then, another trainer ran up to the table and began digging frantically through his bag for his Pokeballs.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy!" I said. I let Baby out of her Pokeball, scooped her up, and carried her out of the Pokemon Center. I decided as I walked out the door that I would go over to the Windworks and try to catch a Drifloon. I knew that I would heed Nurse Joy's warning, but the sky was a brilliant shade of red and I still had time before the sun set completely. I was beginning to notice just how hungry I was and figured Baby must be, too. I walked to the Poke Mart and bought us some food. I decided we could eat on the way to Valley Windworks, because the sun was setting quickly and I felt uneasy being outside in the dark in this town I'd never been to.

I walked a bit until I reached Route 205 and noticed a patch of berry trees. I realized that Floaroma was probably where they taught people how to plant and care for berries, and I knew I would want to learn how before I left tomorrow. Walking a bit more East I noticed a large building with giant wind turbines surrounding it. Valley Windworks was eerie. It was bathed in an orange glow from the sunset, and the giant mills spinning didn't make me feel any more at ease. The building there was pitch black on the inside. I wasn't sure exactly where I could find the Drifloon.

"Pipipi…" Baby cried. She sounded upset. She wiggled, and then jumped out of my arms.

"BABY! Get back here!" I hissed. If I lost Baby in the dark in this weird place, I didn't know what I would do besides sprint back to Nurse Joy and cry and beg for help. Baby wasn't moving anymore, so I went to pick her up again. But she looked absolutely horrified. Was she _shaking_? That's when I felt a tugging at my neck. Something was wrapped around my throat, yanking at me. Baby began attacking it with Metronome. I turned around to see a Drifloon, a cute but ghostly blue balloon. It was still wrapped tightly around my neck. Tug, tug, tug. It was actually beginning to pull me away from Baby and towards the trees. Was it trying to strangle me? Is that why Nurse Joy had told me not to go alone in the dark? I looked at it and just tried to figure out what was going on. It was such a cute Pokemon and had a pouf of cloud-looking fluff on its head, just like Happiny had her little curls. I knew in that moment that I needed this 'floon.

Its wrap on me kept getting more and more intense. I didn't want to hurt it, lest it get angry and hurt me or Baby or run away, but it was freaking me out and pulling me into the trees at this point. A bit panicked, I yanked at its string-like legs and loosened its grip on my neck. I ran to Baby, and the Drifloon started going after me again. I didn't need to tell Baby to attack the Drifloon, she was already taking care of it on her own. The Drifloon began using Ominous Wind on Baby, and I was really unsettled. Ghost-type moves never left me with easy feelings. I was always afraid when I learned about them that my Pokemon might get possessed or something. Baby used Metronome and managed to get the Drifloon's health to the point where it was deflating. I grabbed an unused Pokeball out of my bag and pelted it at the Drifloon. It was pulled inside by a beam of light and the ball dropped to the ground. It shook one, two, and YES! Three times. The button in the middle lit up, and the Drifloon was captured. It was my first addition to my team since Baby, and feeling pretty accomplished, I hugged her close and ran all the way back to Floaroma. I had this creepy feeling like there were other Drifloon around, watching and just waiting to attack. It was probably just me being paranoid, but it felt like I was being followed all the way back to the Pokemon Center...


	5. Chapter 5

Walking into Canalave was probably one of the weirdest feelings I've ever had. I was alone. Completely alone. Even Baby was sleeping. I'd never gone anywhere without another person with me, whether it was my parents, or Bryce, or Riley. And I'd never realized it until I walked through the gate of Canalave and back into the salty air.

It was weirdly dark. There were shadowy clouds in the sky, ominous and sinister looking. For as long as I lived in Canalave I can't remember a day when it was this dark in the middle of the afternoon, unless it had been raining that day.

I rode Mr. Hunter's boat out to Iron Island. He had tried making small talk, and I felt bad, but I was too preoccupied thinking about what I'd say to Riley to uphold any kind of substantial conversation. I knew that attacking him would not help my case. But he deserved it. Who leaves their girlfriend when she is in such an awful place mentally? Well, assholes I guess. I still don't want to believe that Riley is one, but every day he hides on Iron Island it gets harder not to.

Why he would ever come here willingly is beyond me. It's a red island with a cave. Looking around, that cave was basically the only point of interest on the island. And considering I didn't see Riley, I knew that he had to be within. I rolled my eyes and walked inside…

…And I was immediately pushed back outside by a Lucario. Riley's Lucario!

"Pipipipipipipipi!" Baby cried excitedly. Lucario smiled, and I let him hold Baby. Lucario had always loved playing with Baby, and Baby loved him. After the Pokemon had reunited, I asked Lucario where Riley was. Lucario squinted. And that's when I heard his voice.

"Lucario, what are you doing up there?" I winced. I could hear him walk through the cave as he got closer to the entrance. I could run now, run and not have to face him. I could run and wait for him to come after me (because he would eventually, right?), but I was frozen in place.

"Luc, come back in-" Riley was in the doorway. He was taller than me, and he was looking down onto my horrified face. "Natasha…" he paused. A very long pause. I felt my face turning red. I was stupid. Why did I come? "What are you doing here?" he finally said.

I shouldn't have come. This was going to be a waste of time. "What am I doing here?" I paused. I wanted him to know how stupid he was to even ask. "Looking for you, obviously. A better question is what _you're_ doing here."

"Let's not do this now," he said, his eyes darting. He saw Mr. Hunter's boat at the dock.

"What are you hiding from?" I said flatly. "I need your help…" My face fell. He tried to usher me into the cave. "DON'T touch me. You know more about what's going on with Bryce than I do. I need you to help me help him. Please."

Riley looked me in the eyes for the first time since he'd left. "I can't."

"You… can't. What the hell?" My mouth stayed open as I searched his face for something. I wanted some reason why he was being so weird. I got nothing but a somewhat dopey, maybe a little sad expression back. His eyes were blank. "You know what, I was stupid to come. Of course you won't help me," I said. I knew I might regret the "Go to hell," that was the period to the end of that sentence but I let it fly anyway. I took Baby away from Lucario and started walking back to Mr. Hunter's boat.

"You know what, Natasha, you wanna know why?" I turned around. Riley took off his hat and looked past me again onto the ship, where he saw Mr. Hunter. "Get in the cave and I'll tell you." I walked about ten feet into the cave. Riley pushed me further in. I left because you're in love with Bryce," he said as-a-matter-of-factly.

I stared at him for probably three minutes. "You're _kidding_." I looked him blank in the face. "That's bullshit and you absolutely know it." I sat down, put Baby at my side, and put my face in my hands. "You do realize that he's in a coma, right? And he's my childhood friend? So of course I'm upset…"

Riley sighed and rubbed his forehead. "I'm too old for you anyway, Nat."

"So that applies now, but it didn't matter a few weeks ago?" I said. He pursed his lips continued rubbing his forehead. He had only been using me.

"You didn't want to hear about Bryce anymore because you didn't care. You were annoyed. You only stayed with me until we had sex. You left _the next day_." I shook my head and pulled Baby into my lap, and then stood up. He was silent as ever. "Are you going to say anything?" My words were met with silence. Apparently not. I thought back to that night in Sandgem Town. Riley and I had been together for two months at that point. I didn't think there was anything wrong with it. Neither did he. _Of course._

_"_Nat, it's not that… Natasha!..." But I refused to listen. I was disgusted with Riley, and myself, and the direction my life was headed in. I walked back to the ship and told Mr. Hunter that we could leave. I could help Bryce on my own. I would. Trying to get Riley to help me had been such a stupid idea. Mr. Hunter wasn't starting the boat to leave. He was still looking out onto Iron Island. I followed his gaze to see Riley, pulling his jacket on and running towards the boat with his Lucario.

"I figured I might come along for the ride," he said as he jumped on board. He smiled. What a douchebag. I kept my head facing downward but pointed my eyes up and glared. I was trying to show him how pissed I was but he just smiled closed-mouthed at me. I covered my face with my hand and pushed my hair out of my face. I took Baby's tiny hands and helped her balance on a plank of one of the benches. Baby could have all of my attention, and Riley could have zero of it.

I knew Riley knew more about the nightmares than he was telling me. I knew he could help me with Bryce. I just don't know why he couldn't have agreed to help me before I realized what our relationship was. I could really do without that taking over what was left of my thoughts (and emotions) right now. Riley leaned over the ship railing as I backed into the back corner rail of the ship and curled up with Baby.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's notes: Well. Almost two years later I'm finally updating. I can't even tell you what brought me back to this story besides the fact that it came back to me and started to continue itself. I've always felt bad leaving this unfinished and thought I'd give it another go.**

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><p>"What do you<em> know?<em>" I persisted, enunciating every word. Even if he didn't know exactly what was going on, I knew that Riley knew more than I did. His brother had come to, and Riley was smart. Even if he had absolutely no idea how his brother had come back from his non-responsive nightmare state, he still knew more than I did. And what I needed now was reassurance that Bryce would come back. He knew that. I looked at him. He sat hunched over with his mouth open slightly. I noticed his tongue curling back into his mouth. He looked pissed. Was he mad that I was prying or because he didn't know?

"Not a lot," he finally answered, and exhaled.

"Just tell me what you do. Please," I said. We were back in the Canalave Pokemon Center. I'd been thinking that we should go back to my house in Twinleaf so we could talk privately. I wouldn't have minded backtracking on my journey so far if it meant getting Riley to finally talk to me. I also just wouldn't mind walking it with him in general. I could deny it as much as I wanted but I had feelings for him.

"There's this Pokemon, Darkrai," he slowly started. His eyes stared into the distance as he searched for and recalled what he knew. "And I think… that that's what happened to Bryce. Darkrai. I think that's what happened to my brother, too. People go to sleep endlessly and have nightmares. Some old man would tell the stories to my family." He reached for my hand and clasped it in his. I looked at him, he continued to look down into his lap. "The day before my brother woke up, my friends and I were all messing around in that Old Chateau up in Eterna Forest." (Riley was originally from Eterna City.) "That night, I went back to my parent's house and was sitting at my brother's bedside. I saw something glowing in the window and looked up…" he stopped talking. "It makes no sense. I'm sorry. I can't help you, Nat, really. I don't know what I saw. But he woke up the next morning."

"What? Riley, please, just tell me what you can."

He shook his head. "It was pink," he continued shaking his head. "It looked like a crescent moon." He raised one hand and pressed it to his face, covering half of it. "I'm not saying that the Chateau had anything to do with it. But people do say that it's haunted…" his words trailed off.

"You think that it might be, like, a good spirit or something?"

"I don't know, Natasha. I'd never seen anything like it before. Maybe it was just my imagination. I don't know. I don't know."

"Was it a Pokemon?"

"I don't know."

"Shit," I said. "I need to go to the library. We need to go." Riley didn't immediately shoot down the notion that it might be a Pokemon. Maybe it's a good spirit of a Pokemon out to bless those afflicted by Darkrai. I knew that the library might have something about this mystery pink moon if they had anything on Darkrai.

By that point, it was close to night. The curfew in Canalave was still in effect, and there was no way we could spend as much time as we needed in the library with as late as it already was. We went to dinner in the Center instead. Lucario and Baby sat in the booth with us and nibbled on Pokefood as Riley and I talked. He admitted that he hadn't wanted to leave me, but he felt helpless and like he couldn't comfort me. He felt like it would be better if he left because he didn't know what to do. I told him he shouldn't have left anyway. He just gave a piece of his food to Lucario and then changed the subject.

The next morning we woke up and headed to the library. We found every book that we could on Darkrai (all three of them) and got to reading. Riley went through an entire book and picked up the other one that I wasn't reading. A while passed without him saying anything. I wasn't finding anything either and became a little panicked that there was nothing we would be able to find or do. My reading speed picked up and I was taking in less information. No. There had to be something here.

"Nat!" Riley finally exclaimed, full-volume. The few other people who were sitting around at desks and in old chairs turned to look at us. He looked up, realizing his mistake, then nudged the book towards me. The others returned to their books and work.

"_Cresselia_," he read. "_Little is known about this Pokemon, much like Darkrai. However, those humans seemingly affected by Darkrai's nightmarish powers can be revived through Cresselia's orbs of light."_

I re-read the few sentences a few times. This was it. This was exactly what we were looking for.

"Thank God," I murmured. "This is exactly what we need to know. This is it. We can save him!" I looked at Riley excitedly. "We can save everyone who this happens to! How did no one know this before?" I closed the book and looked at it. It was faded black, leather-bound, and all-around ancient looking.

"I'm sure some people do know, Natasha," he said softly. "It's a matter of actually being able to find Cresselia."

"Well, she's come to you before," I said. I stood, still holding the book. He stood also, though he looked uneasy.

"I don't know how or why though."

"Maybe if you sit at Bryce's bedside for a while, while it's dark out, something will-"

"Don't get your hopes up," he almost snapped at me.

"Riley. What the hell?" We were walking towards the library's exit at this point. I dropped the books in the drop-off and turned to him as we stepped outside. The sun was shining high in the sky, and rather than the usual salty humidity the air was crisp and dry. I guess it was about time for the seasons to change. I tried to wrap my head around how the hot weather had passed us so quickly.

Riley looked at me and saw the confusion in my face. He took my shoulders. "I'm sorry," he started. "This is just… I didn't want to tell you because I didn't want you to put faith in me to fix it. When I don't know what's going on." He left his hands on my shoulders and looked out to the water in the canal. Lucario was standing a bit away from us, holding Baby.

"I'm sorry too," I started, matching his gaze and looking out on the canal. I put my hands on his waist. "I'm just happy you're helping me now. Thank you for helping me." My eyes filled with tears. God, I was embarrassed. Riley looked back at my face in that moment. Seeing my watery eyes, he slowly leaned in and kissed me lightly on the mouth. I smiled slightly and moved one of my hands up to his shoulder, which I squeezed. I pulled away from him and walked to Lucario to take Baby back into my own arms. I rested my face on the top of her head and curl for a moment before looking back to Riley.

"So, shall we at least investigate the Chateau?" I said.

"I guess there's no harm in that," he said. Then he looked at me playfully. "Maybe afterward we can even go to Eterna and meet my family."

Not completely sure how to feel about that, my face turned to a look of both excitement and horror. We started to Eterna Forest, Lucario in between us and Baby babbling in my arms. Last time I left Canalave, I was full of despair. This time I was excited for what was ahead.


End file.
